Cloth roll support means for looms



May 22, 1956 M. RoGERs CLOTH ROLL SUPPORT MEANS FOR LOOMS Filed Aug. 14, 1953 INVENTOR. LEONARD M. ROGERS A TTORNE Y cLoTH RoLLr sUPPoRT MEANS non LooMs Leonard Mr.` Rogers, Mendon, Mass., assignor't'or Draper Corporation, Hopedale, Mass., a corporation olf-Maine Application August-14, 1953, SerialNo. 3743-367 4 crains; (c1. rss-304) This inventionpertains to looms for weaving', and more speciiieallyt means forming a part of said looms `for facilitating; theinstallation of aj clothl roll on which `the woven lmaterail is wound', and for lifting the roll and` materail thereon to render less diilicnlt the doi'ng of the' material. V

It is a general object ofthe invention to incorporate in looms a simple and elfective means for assisting in the introduction of a cloth.` roll to the cloth roll takeup means and for liftingthe roll' and material wound thereon so as to withdraw the supporting 'and/or driving gudgeons therefor, also for increasing the safety and for expedting the removal of the woven material from the loom.' n

It is a more specific object of the invention to devise a cloth roll raising means which shall function to elevate the roll andi the heavy material thereon by pressure of the loom attendants foot on a convenient pedal to remove the weight of the: roll and material from the supportingfgudegons, but which will not give risev to overtravel or excess movement of the parts which might' thereby add a different but equally effective deterrent to easy disengagementof the supportingand' driving elements. e

Other objects ofthexinvention will become apparent from `the following description.

Inlooms forweaving the fabric is passed overa takeup roller or other means adapted to draw it ata fixed rate and to advance it on toward a cloth' roll' which is `rotated in some convenient manner for winding up that fabric until a roll of sulhcientidiameter has beenformed whereupon the roll and material may be removed from the loom. 'n some instances the cloth roll has been borne upon gudgeons oneA at least of which is positively driven and which therefore' rotatesv the fabric roll to wind the material as fast as it is woven. These vsupport'- ing and' driving means for the clothv roll are preferably to be slid axially into and from engagement with the roll and there must be at the driving end at least, a connection by means of which torque transmitted to the vgudgeon will also be conveyed through to the roll.

While some'means have heretofore been devised for facilitating the removal of these cloth rolls, it has generallybeen the practice in weaving establishments to release the roll after suitable conveying means have been placed beneath the cloth andv to handle the material more or less awkwardlyor ineiciently inv that a great deal of manual effort has been required. Now that it has be- ,come practical to Wind much larger cloth rolls than were at one time considered possible, one of the major dicultie's involved isthat of disengaging the roll supporting and driving gud'geons which, due to the great weight imposed thereon, present considerable frictional resistance to movement. According to the invention hereinafter tobe described in greater detail, a cloth roll lifting means which lserves to position the roll as it is introduced and also to lift the roll and cloth thereonv prior to removal ofthe woven material is so devised that by a" minimum `ofl effort on a convenient' foot pedal', eachl United SWICS Patent 2,746,489 `Patented May "22, 1956 LCC hood of the pedal pressure' doing; more than lifting the material to free the lgudgeon, that is,l it is notpossible once the mechanism "has been properly adjusted to press against the pedal with snch force as to lift the material and to press it upwardly against. the gudgeon so. hard that ininstances the effort required to disengage the parts might actually be greater than otherwiseiwould be the case due merely to the load imposed` by the Weight of the mass supported. y l V The invention will be described' hereinafter by reference t'o the" accompanying' figures of drawing wherein;

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a partL of a loom to which the invention has been applied. y i a Fig. 2 is a section showing certain parts enlarged yand illustrating details' of the gdgeon at thegdriving end, its bearings and. the lifting means for the cloth` roll and fabric. V p.

` Fig. 3 is` a side elevation'of thatv mechanism shown in Fig. 2'.

Now referring to the figures, enough of a loom has been illustrated to show the application of the invention thereto. rIhe `loom comprises loomsides 10 and Ill, a breast' beam IZ and a front girt 13 between which are conveniently supported cloth roll stands 1'4land 15. Adjacent andbehind the breast beam IZ is the usualI takeu'p or sand roll 16` about which the material` is passed and' by which it is frictionally gripped and. advanced at a predetermined rate depending upon the 'number of picks of filling per inch which it is desiredfto insert. That material then passes downwardly and is woundY upon a cloth roll 17 this cloth roll being supported and rotated as will hereinafter be described and serving to have wound thereon a sizeable rollY of Woven material W, it being possible in `modern types of looms to wind a package of very large diameter thereby making it unnecessaryjto don the material from the loom except at more extended periods. e v

*The cloth roll stands and the supporting and4 driving means for the roll 17 are lsubstantially alike at each side of the loom except for the fact that at the lefthand side, Fig. l, is positively rotated while that at the right hand side merely serves to support the roll and fabric carried thereby.V In this Fig. 1 and to an enlarged scale in Fig. 3, this means is shown as comprising a gudgeon 18 mounted for rotation in a bearing such, for example, as the anti-friction bearing 19 carried in the standlS at that side of the loom and in a second bearingzil which is in fact a part ofa bracket 21 which attaches to the adjacent loomside 11. The inner end of this gudgeon 18 is slotted asj-at 22 and since the roll 17 is tubular or at least hollow at its ends, thegudgeon is adapted to slide into it for a limited extent and the knotch or Vslot 22 engages about a pin 23 which is passed' through and iixed in that end of rolll 17. The opposite end/of the gudgeon borne in lbearing 20 is grooved 'as at 24 and a spring pressed ball or plunger 25 engage'able in the groove and carried bythe bearing serves to hold the gudgeon inwardly so that once engaged as 'herein illusgudgeon and serves as a means for sliding it axially as above described.

The mechanism at the opposite or right `hand side of the loom is` substantially the same-as kthat just above described and it is not believed necessary to describe the parts there orto indicate them by reference numerals. Preferably, one gudgeon is driven thereby to impart the necessary rotational movement to roll 17 and that drive is, according to the present construction, associated with the left handgudgeon and is taken from a shaft 27, Fig. 1, which is continuously kdriven or rotated through a frictional means generally indicated at 28 and not necessary of description here except to say that the same constitutes something in the nature of a slip clutch by means of which rotation imparted through pawl and ratchet means 29 and 30 is carried through to a sprocket and then through a chain 31 to a second and larger sprocket which is adapted toV drive a hub member 32 splined or keyed to the gudgeon Y1,8 so that it continuously drives the latter although axial'movement between the two is contemplated. 'A ratchet wheel 33 is also xed to the hub 32 to rotate therewith and with the sprocket and also serves to prevent reverse rotation since a spring pressed pawl 34 is engaged therewith although the same may be disengaged manually thereby to permit reverse rotation when it is desired to draw off a small amount of the fabric thereby to inspect it or to cut out a length for i some particular purpose.

The drive from pawl and ratchet wheel 29 and 30, clutch V28 and the chain 31 is primarily derived from some suitable moving part of the loom and is carried through to take-up roll 16. Such mechanisms are known to those conversant with this art and need not be described in greater detail here.

Upon starting, the gudgeons are moved axially or outwardly endwise of their bearings so as to permit introduction of the cloth roll after which each is slid into place p until the locking plunger engages its respective groove 24. 'Ihe mechanism described and claimed hereinafter is adapted tol facilitate that operation and also to assist in removing the roll after a mass of woven material has been wound thereon. For that purpose, a memv ber adapted to swing. throughout a limited angular extent is pivoted on stud 35 held in stand 15 and positioned somewhat below and forwardly of the axis of gudgeon 18. This member comprises a track portion 36 of width suitable to retain the end of the roll v17 and eX- tending rearwardly and. forwardly of the pivot being bent upwardly as at 37 at its rearmost end and having a slightupturn 38 at the forward end. The track geni erally slopes downwardly toward the front except that at the rear portion underlying the roll 17 a slight depression 39 is formed which the roll is adapted'to seat and which is just deep enough to prevent its rolling toward the front of the loom accidentally. A downwardly extending arm 40 terminates ina pedal'41 adjacent its lower end and, as herein shown, is offsetfs'o that it extends from one side tothe other of the stand 15 project-` ing through a cored opening 42 therein. In actual prac-v tice the weight of the member is so disposed with respect to the pivot 35 that it swings forwardly and downwardly so that there will be a slight clearance when the parts are properly adjusted and the roll is 'in position on its gudgeons. Upon the loom attendant pressing his toe against the pedal 41, arm 40 is swung to the rear and the track adjacentthe 'cloth roll moves upwardly sufcientlyto engage and to raise that roll so that its weight i will be removed from the gudgeon. limit the movement ofthe arm-40 by stops screws 43 and 44 threaded into'an enlarged Ysection of the depending arm and locked in adjusted position by the usual lock nuts. The stop-screw 43 prevents excessive forward movement of the parts` andv maintains the position of the parts whenv the weight is upon them while the screw 4 4 at the-opposite side of the arml prevents It ispreferred to too great a movement in the direction of raising the roll. That obviates any likelihood of one exerting excessive pressure on the pedal and subjecting the parts to pressure in an upward direction which might actually prevent withdrawal of the gudgeon as effectively or more effectively than would the weight of the roll and cloth since the leverage provided is considerable and it is contemplated that a very light pressure on pedal 41 may suitably elevate the heaviest roll of fabric which may at any time be Wound.

`In actual operation of the device, of course, one end is released independently and then the other, although if two persons are at the same loom, they may disengage both sides simultaneously. After the gudgeons have been withdrawn, the roll merely rests at the rear portion of the track and a slight amount of effort employed to draw or roll the cloth package forwardly will result in moving the material toward the front of the track. 'Ihere is no danger of overtravel since the upturned end 38 prevents that.4 At that position a truckor other device adapted to remove the material may be manipulated for engaging the roll and for conveying it away from the loom preparatory to insertion of another roll and starting a second fabric package thereon.

While the pedal 41 has been spoken of as such and is designed for foot operation, it is, of course, evident that the attendant may employ it as a hand grip, or it may be formed in any mannereconvenient for that purpose.

The depression 39 may be varied in depth as may the upturned ends 37 and 38 of the track, the latter necessarily serving as a barrier to unintended movement of the cloth roll offthe track, while the former serves to center the roll as the gudgeons are placed in driving engagement therewith and during lifting when dofng.

While one embodiment of the invention has been disclosed, it is to be understood that the inventive concept may be carried out in a number of ways. This invention is, therefore, not to be limited to the precise details described, but is intended to embrace all variations and modifications thereof falling within the spirit of the invention and the scope of the claims.

I claim: Y

1. Ina loom having a cloth roll upon which fabric is wound and means for supporting and .rotating said cloth roll, said means being retractible to release the roll, a means for facilitating the release and handling of the roll which comprises at each end thereof, a pivoted member havinga roll engaging track, a depending pedal operated means comprised asv a functionally unitary part of said pivoted member Vfor swinging said member to engage said track and roll and to lliftthe latter, and other means for limiting the swinging movement'of the member in either direction. Y

2Q In a loom having a cloth roll upon which fabric is wound and means for supporting and rotating said cloth roll, said means being retractible lto release the roll, a means for facilitating the release and handling of the roll which comprises at each end thereof, 'a member pivoted forwardly of the'cloth roll, a roll engaging track forming a` partV of said member and extending forwardly ofthe pivot and also rearwardly thereof to underlie the said roll, and means to impart to the member a small angularmmovement to engage said track with and to lift the roll which'irncludes an integrally formed, depending arm and and pedal, and stopV means to limit the swinging movement of the pedal yin either direction.

3. Mechanism as defined in claim 2 wherein said roll engaging trackis upwardly curved at each end and that portion thereof which underlies said cloth roll is slightly depressed to receive the roll. Y

4. In a loom having a cloth roll vupon which fabric is wound and means for supporting and rotating said cloth roll which comprises cloth roll kstands one at each end of the roll 'and gudgeons borne in said stands.

vcarried by the arm and engageable with the cloth roll 10 stand for limiting the movement of said arm and track so that upon pressing said pedal the cloth roll shall be raised to relieve the gudgeozl of the Weight of roll and cloth thereon.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Kiessling Nov. 20, 1951 Kiessling Nov. 11, 1952 

